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Arizona upends school procurement laws in effort to cool cozy relationships with builders
Included in the $10.4 billion budget passed by Arizona lawmakers and signed by Gov. Doug Ducey last week are massive changes to how public schools will be allowed to hire builders for large construction projects, as well as harsh new penalties for malfeasance that occurs during the selection process.
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EDUCATION
Emails reveal close ties between construction firms, top school officials
Emails obtained by AZCIR from four school districts show the depth of the relationships construction company executives have cultivated with school district administrators. School district officials also regularly sought out the companies to ask for money for various projects, the records show.
GOP legislature sending more money to ‘freedom schools,’ despite existing surplus
Amid a teacher strike over K-12 funding that has closed hundreds of schools, Arizona lawmakers are sending $7.5 million to so-called “freedom schools” designed to teach conservative values. Since 2016, $12 million has been directed to the schools, which still have $9.8 million on hand.
No link between school district administration costs, teacher pay
As state policy makers weigh their options in response to the “Red for Ed” movement that is organizing the teacher protests, some conservatives and their allies have pointed to bloated administration costs as a reason teachers in Arizona have among the worst pay in the nation.
Attorney General asks court to halt Scottsdale school construction over procurement violations
The Arizona Attorney General’s office filed a complaint Thursday against Scottsdale Unified School District asking a court to prevent further construction on Hohokam and Cheyenne elementary schools, following investigations into possible procurement and conflict of interest violations.
Builders bankroll school bond campaigns, dominate construction contracts
A small group of companies dominate the K-12 design and construction sector. The same companies also largely finance the campaigns aimed at persuading the public to approve bond and override proposals to fund the projects, even funding a “dark money” group to conceal the support.
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